Slow Lit is the sleep technique that will have you dozing off in no time

Meet Slow Lit, the growing podcast genre that will knock you out quicker than two sleeping pills and a mug of hot cocoa. While plugging in to switch off may seem like a contradiction, thanks to uninteresting plotlines and maladroit storytelling, slow literature distracts you from the stuff that usually keeps you awake without being interesting enough to hold your attention. (Read: the digital equivalent of a bottle of melatonin.) Press play on one of these five snooze-inducers and we can guarantee you’ll find it impossible to keep your eyes open.

Sleep With Me Boring you to slumber with long-winded tangents and unimportant drivel on an array of bizarre topics, Sleep With Me — narrated by the monotonous, gravelly tones of former librarian Drew Ackerman — gives a whole new meaning to the term snore-fest.

CalmAuthor Phoebe Smith’s grown-up bedtime stories for the Calm app take you on uneventful journeys around the globe, each narrated by the silvery voices of guest speakers (including Stephen Fry and Matthew McConaughey).

Miette’s Bedtime Story Distracting without being too stimulating, Miette’s Bedtime Story is the podcast answer to comforting white noise. In soothing, purring tones, the podcast recites some of the world’s best short fiction tales, from treasured classics to unknown miniature masterpieces.

HeadspaceEnsuring that you’ll be counting your zzzz’s quicker than you can say ‘goodnight,’ Headspace’s new ‘Sleepcasts’ series uses subtly changing ‘unique audio experiences’ that combine visualisation and sound to lure you to dreamland.